Yesterday was a smokin’ 36C/96F and beach was packed! We went to Kelso beach once again to practice our open-water swim.
Thankfully it was flooded with lifeguards! There were even lifeguards farther out where we did our practicing.
I admit, I had butterflies in my stomach. I always have butterflies before open-water swims!!! The swims do get easier though, I will admit. All in all, I am much more comfortable in the lake now…I don’t even get frazzled by seaweed on my face now, which is a victory in itself. We were in the middle of our swim and Eric was near me and he started cracking up because apparently I had seaweed ALL OVER MY FACE and HEAD…and I had no idea it was even there! How hardcore am I?! :lol:
As I mentioned previously, if you swim along the buoys (near arrows), there and back = 350 metres which makes it a great place to train for a try-a-tri (375 metres)!
Oh it was COLD getting into that water yesterday because the air was sooo warm it made the water feel like ice. Totally the opposite of our try-a-tri when the air was freezing and the water felt like bath water.
During our last open-water swim, we made the mistake of trying to swim the entire 350 metres right from the start and we felt a bit overwhelmed. Today, we made sure to warm up first by doing small ‘laps’ of about 25 metres or so until we got comfortable. After the warm-up we swam about 50 metres at a time, there and back and overall we felt like this swim went better than the last. We swam for around 30-40 minutes, but I honestly have no idea as we didn’t have a watch on hand!
Our Belwood try-a-tri is quickly approaching and we are both feeling a bit nervous because we haven’t had much time to practice lately. We are really going to have to amp up our training over the next couple weeks if we are going to be ready.
POST-SWIM HUNGER!
Eric fired up the grill as soon as we got home!!! Bless his kind soul.
He made me an Amy’s Texas burger and I topped it with spinach, tomato, tomato paste, sea salt, and red pepper hummus. WOWIE!!!! This was awesome. On Ezekiel toast of course.
He also grilled zucchini…it was SO juicy it squirted me in the eye!
drizzled with EVOO, S + P
and corn on the cob slathered in earth balance…
I almost burned my mouth on this because it was just so good and I couldn’t wait patiently!
Incredible post-swim dinner, it was.
Then we ran some errands and we were pretty much zonked after that so we decided to have a movie night, watching Mr. and Mrs. Smith, while eating some Cherry, Banana, and Coconut Butter bread!
I proceeded to eat two huge slices the size of my arm (how is that for portion control!!) and then pass out on the couch at 9pm! I don’t think I have been to bed earlier than 11pm in a dog’s age.
I stumbled into my bed around 11pm and slept until about 6am when I naturally woke up. I felt sooooo much better this morning. I really needed that break yesterday, especially now that I am working on Saturdays I don’t get much time away from work. I didn’t so much as touch the computer yesterday morning after I posted. It was awesome and much needed disconnect.
Today is another scorcher outside, however unlike yesterday today is humid, humid, humid! YUK! I knew I had to get in my run asap this morning, so I headed out around 6:30am. Before my run I snacked on a new raw + GF Glo Bar flavour I am working on. Any guesses as to what flavour this is??
I walked outside this morning expecting to find a crisp and cool morning, but I was met with humid air so thick I could have sliced a piece and had it for lunch. Thank goodness for Camelbaks!
My goal for this run was to challenge myself to stay under 9 minute miles. My Camelbak was full and I was ready to go!
The Run:
- Distance: 3 miles
- Time: 26:15 mins
- Avg Pace: 8:45 min/mile
Mile splits:
- Mile 1: 8:59
- Mile 2: 8:51
- Mile 3: 8:24
What a beautiful negative split this run was!!! After almost a year and a half of running, I finally feel like I am getting a handle on running negative splits. It makes runs a lot more challenging and I highly recommend them if you need to add some interest into your routine runs.
I came home and sweat poured out of my pores as fast as I could replenish my body with water. No joke. This humidity is sickening! I need some nice dry heat….
Or a Green Monster will have to do!
Green monsters are pretty much the perfect post-run snack!
In this bad boy was: 1 cup almond milk, 3 kale leaves, spinach, 1 frozen banana, 4 pitted cherries, 1/2 scoop Amazing Grass wheatgrass powder, 1 tbsp chia seeds.
Today’s question- Do you have to modify the time you workout in the summer? Do you have to switch to evening workouts or get up earlier before it gets hot? What are your summer workout strategies?
This was one of my first early morning workouts in a long time. With myself being so time-crunched in the mornings to get my orders out, it is difficult for me to squeeze in workouts before 6:30am, but I really enjoyed being done my workout by 7am this morning! I might see if I can work it so that I switch to a few early morning workouts each week. It is so nice not to have it hovering over me the whole day!
“Even if I don’t reach any of my goals, I’ve gone higher than I would have if I hadn’t set any”
-Danielle Fotopoulos, soccer player
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{ 68 comments… read them below or add one }
Oh god, wasn’t the weather disgusting yesterday??
It was like being under a heat lamp in a steam room!
Holy moly!! That is a CROWDED beach! Strange as it sounds, I find myself working out more at the gym in the summer, just because it gets so hot outside! I also try to run earlier in the morning, because otherwise, I know that it’s just not going to happen.
Have a great Monday!
It is just as bad here today too…so hot and humid. I hate it unless I’m laying in a pool!
Congrats on the open water swim AND the negative splits on your run! Doing negative splits is really tough. I’ve been running for a long time, and often have to retreat to the treadmill to do them (because I can force myself to run faster that way).
I do feel like I need to adjust my workout time in the summer, but sometimes it can be tough. In theory, I’d love to become a morning exerciser. I do love getting my workouts out of the way first thing, and I feel better the rest of the day. But…I have a really hard time working out/running in the morning. I feel sluggish and it seems like everything takes twice the usual amount of effort. I know part of it is just that I’m not used to that schedule yet and that it could get better if I become more consistent. I just haven’t motivated myself to get to that point yet.
I’m an early morning work outer…I feel if I don’t get it over with early, by the time the afternoon rolls around i’d rather not do it at all!
Horrible, I know.
When I can drag myself out of bed I love early morning but it doesn’t happen very often. I also enjoy evening workouts after all the dishes are done. When it’s really hot I hit the treadmill.
I live in Toronto so lately if I’m not up for my morning run by 5am, I can’t go until late night! On Sunday I ran at 7am and it was too hot even then! I may revert to the treadmill this week to avoid the heat…getting up at 5am to run sucks :-)
I try to get up in the summer nice and early to do my early morning workouts. Today I went running around 9 and it was SO hot to run, but I made it. It was brutal though! I’m so impressed with your open water swim, the seaweed in the face would gross me out! :)
No matter what the season, I try to workout in the morning because I love the extra zip it gives me for the rest of the day. That and I don’t have to keep worrying about when I’ll be able to fit a workout in later on in the day.
I’ve been thinking about starting up with swimming again, especially since it’s summer and I can just use the lake. I hate pools so usually avoid water activities like the plague.
Woohoo!! Congrats on the negative splits girl.
I love working out in the early morning (6:00-7:00) before it gets too hot. It also gets my metabolism revved for the day, and ensures that I’ll actually fit a workout in (things always come up in the afternoons.)
I’m with you on the soy products – I use Garden Medleys for the same reason. Yum!
I thought about switching to evening work outs this summer because it’s hard to cool off and stop sweating in time to get showered for work. But I hate putting it off all day, so I just make sure to leave a bit of extra time to cool down before hopping in the shower now :).
Congrats on your swim! I know you run with an ipod, but do you swim with one as well? I know they make those waterproof cases, but I still feel a little nervous about the idea of taking mine in the pool!
Nope I don’t swim with music…I dont find I miss it either. I think it is b/c I am so focused maybe?
It was hotter than blazes yesterday, and even hotter today! Ick. A swim was an excellent choice! I love the Amy’s Texas burgers too… so delicious! Actually I love pretty much anything Amy’s, its a bit of an addiction!
I don’t mind hotness as much as I just HATE humidity. Then it gets all hot and sticky and gross! D: I’m not a runner so I don’t exactly know what negative splits are…?
My form of working out usually just involves workout videos. I’ve sung the praises of the 30 Day Shred, and I’d sing them again! I always turn on two fans directly at myself when I’m exercising. :D
Wei-Wei
Oh man, yesterday was crazy! I ran 12k in the morning and thankfully the first half was fairly shady but the last 6k was pretty brutal! I think I chugged back TWO green monsters when I finally got in the door!
When I was working out in the evenings I would push my runs later into the evening in the summertime to get out of the humidity. Now that I exercise in the morning it’s not too bad, thankfully today was yoga day but it was still boiling hot inside the house (our a/c is broken!!!).
I’m really in love with the support you and Eric seem to have for each other. It’s so beautiful that you two do these kinds of things together … gives me hope :)
Summer workouts … Usually I ride my bike outside but these days for cardio I turn on the AC in the basement and go for a run on the treadmill. My other fitness choice is Pilates, and we do that indoors in a nice cool studio haha.
I try to go out early and they stay in between 10am-2pm when the sun is the strongest. Also, I made you chia seed jam for my daughter (another hit!) since we just picked 16Ls of local organic strawberries and wanted her to have some jam too (too much sugar in traditional jam). Thanks for the great recipe.
My Guess it it has something to do with Summer because of the the SUN flower seeds…i could be totally off though!
You should take some time to relax. You have bee such a hard working lady lately.
I’ve been getting up at 5:30 a.m. every day to get my exercise in before work. It’s just too hot to wait until I get home!
Yay for negative splits!
Sounds like you had a great workout!
That burger looks delish, and you can’t beat corn on the cob fresh off the grill :) Have you ever tried it with lime and a bit of chili powder? It gives it a unique smokey kick.
As much as the heat is pretty intense, I’m not gonna lie- I prefer it to last year’s cold and damp summer with very little heat waves. That being said, it’s way easier to run in that climate than this one, and since I am the world’s worst morning person (and not a very strong swimmer), I usually end up eating a light dinner around 5 and then going for a run at around 8.
Glad you are getting more accustomed to the open water swims. I wouldn’t even have thought about seaweed getting on you, which is so obvious. I would freak about that at first too.
I don’t usually change my workout time during the summer since I normally go to a gym. One thing that does change however, is it is a lot harder to get in a workout if I miss my morning one. In cooler months I will usually just do something at home, but it’s too hot with no A/C so I can’t. And at night when it cools I have no motivation.
I didn’t get a chance to train at all this weekend because of the heat! My gym is at my office and closed on the weekends and I don’t have the AC installed at home so even an indoor workout wasn’t an option for me :( I am making plans for indoor sessions and maybe a swim this week because I have a race coming up and don’t want to get too far off track.
Your burger with hummus looks so tasty!
WOWZER, 35degrees with humidity!!?? Heck, you are a SUPERWOMAN for running in that! Now it’s summer, I’ve had to get my workout in much earlier too, and I’m having to adjust to the water thing as well..I think I’ve been consistently dehydrated for the past 2montsh!
Good job on the swim btw :) open water freaks me out!
Your post-swim dinner looks so good! I hate the humidity! I live in New Jersey and the humidity here can be so bad and it makes you sweat so much more! yuck! During the summer I make sure to get my morning run in as early as possible which normally means between 8 and 9 am. I have to do all my other running at the gym on the treadmill because after 10 it’s just too hot!
Sunflower pumpkin or something? I see sunflower seeds, and the color of pumpkin a bit. Whatever it is, it looks good :)
Everything looks so perfect and summery! I havent gotten out to the beach yet, but I’m dying too. Even if it is packed like this!
Ugh, I can’t stand this hot, HUMID weather! It feels like 40* here in Ontario! :(
I definitely have to change my workouts in the summer. Normally I like to exercise in the afternoon, but the heat and humidity are usually too intense around that time. So instead I exercise in the evenings, and just make sure I bring a lot of water with me and take it slow if I need to!
I always thought the humidity lessened the further north you got. Here in FL the humidity is a killer, but apparently it’s everywhere else too! It sucks running in the muck, it always feels like I’m moving through soup.
That’s exactly why I have a gym membership! That way the weather can never be an excuse!
We’ve been having a lot of hot, humid weather in Minnesota too! Unfortunately, I am not much of a morning workout person, so I just go running when I can, no matter how hot it is! I just make sure to take water breaks or walking breaks whenever I need them.
Also, thanks for putting the link up for the type of Camelbak you use! I was just looking at them this morning and wondering which one you’ve been raving about. I have a feeling I’ll be making that purchase soon if this hot/humid weather keeps up!
I have to workout in the mornings or evenings during the summer otherwise I just get too hot and have a headache for hours after my workout
I hate hot weather for sure, it can get pretty frustrating outside.
I like to work out in the mornings, not just because it’s cooler but also because it gives me more time to rest after work. (I have 9-5 days and am pooped afterwards).
The Glo Bar looks like spice maybe pumpkin flavour.
I have noticed you are having green monsters again does this mean you purchased a new blender?
I am wanting to set up a home gym and I am looking to buy a treadmill any thoughts on what brand to buy? ( one that does not cost a fortune)
Nope not yet!
I don’t usually have to alter my workout routine too much. The summers in Oregon aren’t too miserable.
I would def. rather wake up earlier to run in the summer. It’s humid here too and it’s awful! You can’t even breathe :?
I love that you eat tomato paste like ketchup. I’ll have to try that!
Wow. Your GM sounds intense! Will have to see if I can handle that sometime. Love your day of eats!! That is pretty hardcore…I need to try an open water swim. Hopefully they don’t have seaweed in colorado lakes? lol DEFinitely excited for the new flavor of raw/gf bars. LOVE the first ones, so I’m sure these will be just as delicious. mmm :)
I’m so glad you’re getting more comfortable with the open water swimming, I’m sure you and Eric will demolish your previous try-a-tri time! Do you think you will finish together again this time, or race your own race? Oh and I love tomato paste too! My Dad has always had it on toast for breakfast!
hahah not sure…we haven’t talked about it yet. We don’t even feel ready to do another one yet, so we shall see I guess!
hmmmmm…. that flavor looks tropical! Mango perhaps? well, whatever it is it looks delicious and probably just as tasty as the original liberate bar!
Good job swimming through that crowd!!! and eating two slices the size of your arm is portion control..eating them the size of you LEG however, would be a little much ;)
Angela, as crazy as this might sound, I LOVE exercising in super hot, humid weather. I used to always do yoga outside when I could while I was at home, in Ottawa. Now I live in dry, dry Calgary and though the city is beautiful and I get out to the mountains every weekend, I just feel like my hair, skin and body are so much happier in the humidity. I used to play in this field hockey tournament every year and it would get so hot and humid that the water would just evaporate/steam off the turf (we water the turf before playing) and those were the only times when I would think.. hmm, maybe this humidity is a bit out of hand. But now I miss it like crazy!
I work out any time of day and since I just do walks and gentle stuff, sometimes I get out twice a day, just to soak in as much beautiful fresh air as possible.
Since I have the summer off (I am a teacher) … I workout a lot more in the summer. I usually workout in the morning.
Ugh I know what you mean about the weather, it’s roasting here too! I’m trying not to complain though because I usually spend all winter whining about how it’s freezing!
I usually don’t modify my summer workouts as I always tend to work out in the early mornings anyways, but I actually find it easier in the summer to get up early – I’m thinking this is because the sun is up sooner so I don’t feel like the rest of the world is still asleep!
I’m guessing sunflower seeds and possibly pumpkin for the Glo Bar as well, although the orange-y-ness is making me wonder if it might be a little more fruity than that…. I’ll be interested to find out! :)
Lucky for me, the weather here (southern cal) never really gets too hot to do my cardio outside… As long as it’s under 90*’s I can handle it… Just have to make sure I hydrate properly. Today’s high is supposed to be 68 ?! I do prefer working about before teh hottest part of the day though… tends to zap my energy.
Wow, that’s some hot weather you’ve been having-36C!! Glad you’re getting more confident doing the open-water swimming, you’ll ace the tri! As per your food and photos look stunning!
I am guessing it’s pumpkin pie flavor :)
You’re amazing! Open water swims make me nervous.
I usually try to do a workout outside in the morning. In the evening I swim, so I don’t feel sweat, yay!
hmmm? poppyseeds in there perhaps or is it chia? goji berries? what ever it is it looks delish.
very humid here very often so yes have had to start the run much earlier than i like to as it takes me so long to wake up i am a danger to myself out there!!!
so re: green monster… i haven’t tried one yet but i was wondering if you could use swiss chard instead of spinach or would it taste to strong???
hahah I am not a chard fan so Im probably the wrong person to ask!
Since we’re warm year round in FL, I don’t change my routine much for summer. In other words, I do my running inside on the treadmill. If I run the one mile to the gym, I do it no later than 7:30-7:45, I do try to get my biking and rollerblading in earlier — no later than 8:00 a.m. Only if it’s overcast will I go later and later in the day the bugs are bad. I’m pretty much an early morning exerciser anyway; I like to have it over with.
I love that lake! And I love the idea of swimming near the buoys. I am sure that it helped ‘mentally’ to know that there was something to grab on to if you needed to!
I absolutely love the hot weather, so I actually try to push myself harder in the summertime. I do, however, find myself drinking MUCH more water to quench my body. I’ll even pour water down my back on really hot bike rides. Such a good feeling.
~Amanda
Sounded like you had a great workout. :)
I workout indoors more often when it gets too hot.
Oh my gosh, has it ever been hot out these past few days! I ran outside yesterday morning and I know exactly what you mean about sweat pouring out of your pores! I felt like a fountain!!
I usually work out at the gym though, so the heat isn’t normally an issue.
We haven’t even gone above 75 yet, so I’m still trying to figure out how to exercise when it’s cold out and I don’t have a gym anywhere close to me.
Ohh my gosh, that grill meal looks INCREDIBLE!! It’s very similar to the one I had yesterday, too. :)
http://cleanteenkelsey.com/2010/07/05/happy-4th-of-july-peach-pickin/ :)
I much prefer working out in the mornings, I like working out in the cold, I hate the heat, all I think about is how hot I am, the flies annoy me and I really whinge hahahaha. I do 3 mornings a week training and 1 night training. Thankfully at the moment in Australia it is Winter, although it was 1.5C this morning, it was icy cold. My brother is my PT and he loves training in the heat, he tells me it is good for me to sweat it out, I don’t know what he is trying to sweat out of me though :-)
Is it sticky or what!? I actually got out of hot yoga today and felt cool! Bracing for tm morning’s a.m. run. But you’re right, while it doesn’t always feel that way when I’m melted in my bed, getting a run in at the top of the morning has got to be one of the best ways to start your day.
That new Glo bar looks very yummy! Sunflower seeds are great. Pumpkin flavour would be delish!
wow that beach looks packed!
I live In Mississippi and its been in the upper 90’s everyday and high high humidity, so I HAVE to lower my mileage and raise my times to not pass out!
Love the quote..LOVE IT.
Swimming makes my hangry.
You should come to Oz to cool off. :)
Yes, have to modify which time I go training, but the other way around. :P Normally, I study, so then I’m able to do morning workouts. I’m a fan of, like you say, not having it hovering over me the whole day. But in the summertime I have to work (and I have recently moved back to my apartment after livning with my parents for 3 months, so I don’t sleep that well yet, still adjusting to new sleeping environment), so it tend to be more afternoon workout. A big plus is that a friend and I signed up for a 10 km race in late August, so we make sure to go running together at least once a week – it’s awesome having running company now and then! :)
And it’s defintely more rare that I go to the gym in summertime – why be inside when you can workout in the beautiful woods instead? ;)
Love open water swimming, don’t know about all the casual swimmers being around me while I practice though. Every time I see you training for your tri, makes me want to get back to tri training again too, however, gotta stay focused on one thing and that’s 2 marathons in the winter for me this year. I’ll get back to tri’s next year. 2012 is the year for a half ironman! Woohoo!
Hmmmm, that bar looks to have something of a raisin nature in it, but pumpkin might be more like it.
As for a workout schedule, well, you know here in TX it’s hot….humid…hot…humid and just plain ol’ hot in the summertime, so my running mostly goes into the morning hours, around 4:50AM, I head out the door for my short little 30-40 min. run during the week and on Sat. when I run with my running group, especially because these are longer runs, 8 miles this Sat. and being extended every Sat. a mile or 2, we start at 5am or 6:30am, depending on the length. It’s still humid but the pavement is not quite as hot and the air is not as hot etiher. My other workout is Jazzercise and it’s in a gym, so you know the answer to that.
where i live it’s probably 30C in winter, and in summer it’s usually 48C! so i work out at the gym, because of the heat and also because we don’t have many good paved roads/paths to run on!